Bar Owner Faces One Year in Jail For Defying COVID-19 Rules
A bar owner and manager’s criminal citation for allegedly defying the state-mandated curfew calls into question the limits of voluntary compliance enforcement.
Although the Orange County Sheriff’s Department has said it won’t enforce state-level CCP (China Communist Party) virus-related orders, some cities are ticketing offenders.
Costa Mesa is among the cities issuing fines to non-compliant residents and businesses. It recently issued its first criminal citation to a business that defied state curfew hours, even as officers tried to receive voluntary compliance multiple times.
The City of Santa Ana takes a similar approach, a police spokesperson said.
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A jogger passes by the Westend Bar on Monday in Costa Mesa. The owner of the bar is the first person criminally charged in Orange County for operating during the pandemic.
(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
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The owner and an employee of a Southern California bar and restaurant could each face a year behind bars following a dispute at the business in mid-December, according to a report.
Authorities say the Costa Mesa bar’s manager, Luiza Mauro, is accused of physically trying to prevent a uniformed police officer from entering the Westend Bar on Dec. 12, FOX 11 of Los Angeles reported.
Meanwhile, Mauro’s boss – bar owner Roland Barrera – is accused of repeatedly opening the business in violation of coronavirus-related restrictions and curfews, the report said.
OC bar owner charged with illegally operating during pandemic, allegedly defying regulations
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The owner of a Costa Mesa bar has been charged with illegally operating during curfew hours for nonessential businesses during the coronavirus pandemic, prosecutors announced Thursday.
Ronald Michael Barrera, who owns the Westend Bar, is facing one misdemeanor count of violating and neglecting to obey a lawful order and regulation, according to the Orange County District Attorney s Office.
The charges were filed after repeated attempts by law enforcement and city code enforcement officers to educate him on the law and seek voluntary compliance, officials added. The 47-year-old Costa Mesa resident and bar owner on numerous occasions allegedly refused to adhere to an order mandating that all nonessential businesses close between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m.
Orange County Bar Owner Faces Year In Jail For Opening During COVID Lockdown
On 12/31/20 at 8:45 PM EST
Roland Michael Barrera, the owner of the Eastend Bar in Costa Mesa, California, could be sentenced to up to a year in jail for keeping the establishment open despite COVID-19 mitigation restrictions calling for the closure of non-essential businesses, city officials said Thursday.
Citing a rise in COVID-19 cases statewide, public health officials in California issued a limited stay-at-home order in November. Costa Mesa restaurants were ordered to be closed at 10:00 p.m. with only delivery and take-out orders to be provided after that time. The Eastend Bar declined to follow those orders despite repeated visits from authorities.